Netanyahu hails 'historic' fall of Bashar Assad in Syria, credits Israeli attacks on Hezbollah, Iran

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the fall of Bashar Assad's regime in Syria on Sunday and argued that it was a "direct result" of Israeli attacks on Iran and Hezbollah.

Netanyahu made the remarks in a public address shortly after news broke that Assad had fled Damascus on Saturday night with his family. Islamist rebels took over the city on Sunday. Netanyahu cautioned that the fall of the Assad regime is nevertheless "fraught with significant dangers."

"This is a historic day for the Middle East. The collapse of the Assad regime, the tyranny in Damascus, offers great opportunity but also is fraught with significant dangers. This collapse is the direct result of our forceful action against Hezbollah and Iran, Assad's main supporters. It set off a chain reaction of all those who want to free themselves from this tyranny and its oppression," Netanyahu said.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes a televised statement on Nov. 26 in Jerusalem. (Israeli Government Press Office via AP)

The Israeli leader also noted that the fall of the Syrian regime also prompted action by the Israel Defense Forces, who were forced to take positions abandoned by the Syrian Army near the border with Israel.

"But it also means that we have to take action against possible threats. One of them is the collapse of the Separation of Forces Agreement from 1974 between Israel and Syria. This agreement held for 50 years. Last night, it collapsed," he continued. "The Syrian army abandoned its positions. We gave the Israeli army the order to take over these positions to ensure that no hostile force embeds itself right next to the border of Israel. This is a temporary defensive position until a suitable arrangement is found."

Opposition fighters remove a government flag from an official building in Salamiyah, east of Hama, Syria, on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

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Netanyahu closed by offering a "hand of peace" to people in Syria, including to "Muslims who want to live in peace with Israel."

Syrian President Bashar Assad speaks to The Associated Press at the presidential palace in Damascus, Sept. 21, 2016. (AP/Syrian Presidency)

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"Equally, we send a hand of peace to all those beyond our border in Syria: to the Druze, to the Kurds, to the Christians, and to the Muslims who want to live in peace with Israel. We're going to follow events very carefully. If we can establish neighborly relations and peaceful relations with the new forces emerging in Syria, that's our desire. But if we do not, we will do whatever it takes to defend the State of Israel and the border of Israel," Netanyahu finished.